Apparition Hill
The Sacred Space Team were delighted to interview Sean Bloomfield (Director Producer) and Cimela Kidonakis (Producer/DP) about their new documentary Apparition Hill which opens in Omniplex Cinemas on October 7th (The Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary). Apparition Hill is, as the tagline says, "a film about life... and what comes after." A film crew offered 7 free trips to a place of alleged miracles, Medjugorje, a little-known village nestled in between two mountains along the border of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia to film their experiences. Medjugorje has been a hotbed of debate as millions visit the town each year to see for themselves whether the legend is true: that Mary, the actual Mother of Jesus, has appeared to a select group of natives with regularity for the last 30 years. As of yet, the Catholic Church has declared no official ruling one way or another. The winners of the online video contest embarked on a journey seeking answers to life's questions.
Sean and Cimela share with us about their own experiences of Medjugorje, the video contest and the filming process. It is a truly moving account of what happens when you bring 7 strangers together to try to find answers to the questions we are all asking. The beauty of the documentary is it's completely unbiased view on whether or not Our Lady is truly appearing in the little village of Medjugorje. As Sean says in the trailer: "Medjugorje is either the greatest miracle since Jesus walked the earth or its the biggest hoax in the history of mankind."
If you would like to find out more about the 7 winners of the video contest, their application videos are available HERE. So what happened next? Did they find the answers they were seeking? Is Medjugorje a place of miracles? You will have to watch the documentary to find out!
Brother Daniel Maria Klimek described Apparition Hill as "one of the most powerful films I have ever watched in my life, and I know that no words – no matter how eloquent or beautiful – would be sufficient to truly capture the awe-inspiring and breathtaking prowess of this movie." (Br. Daniel's full review is available HERE - it is well worth a read).
Apparition Hill runs from October 7th to 13th. Whether you believe in Medjugorje or not, whether you are a believer or an unbeliever, even if you are simply curious about the phenomena of miracles and apparitions, you will find this documentary to be very moving. It is literally changing lives all over the world, and it has an opportunity to go to the Oscars! Throughout the last few months, several members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences® have been deeply touched by Apparition Hill. Read more about this HERE. To find out more about the film and its crowd-funding initiative HERE.
As we go to press, the showing times are not available for our local Omniplex (Dooradoyle, Limerick), but check out www.omniplex.ie from Tuesday, October 4th to find out all the details (and bring all your friends!).
My Heart Will Triumph
Sean was also helped to write the auto-biography of one of the visionaries, Mirjana Soldo. Mirjana was only 16 years old when she and five other children saw a mysterious young woman on a remote hillside in the village of Medjugorje, then part of Yugoslavia. The woman - who possessed a beauty and grace that seemed to come from beyond - identified herself as the Virgin Mary. The apparitions that began on the afternoon of June 24, 1981 would dramatically change Mirjana’s life and the lives of countless people around the world. This auto-biography gives an excellent insight into Mirjana's personal experiences of the apparitions and her struggles under communism. It is receiving five star reviews on Amazon and is a real page-turner. If you would like to find out more about Mirjana's book HERE (it is also available from The Book Depository HERE or Amazon HERE).
You can listen to Sean and Cimela's interview excerpted from the programme HERE.
Gospel - Luke 17:5-10
The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith’.
The Lord replied, ‘Were your faith the size of a mustard seed you could say to this mulberry tree, “Be uprooted and planted in the sea”, and it would obey you.
‘Which of you, with a servant ploughing or minding sheep, would say to him when he returned from the fields, “Come and have your meal immediately”? Would he not be more likely to say, “Get my supper laid; make yourself tidy and wait on me while I eat and drink. You can eat and drink yourself afterwards”? Must he be grateful to the servant for doing what he was told? So with you: when you have done all you have been told to do, say, “We are merely servants: we have done no more than our duty”.’
Words on Fire
English Dominicans
Sunday Reflections
Centre for Liturgy
Liturgical odds & ends
Liturgy of the Hours - psalter week 3 - 27th week in ordinary time
Saints of the Week
October 3rd - Blessed Columba Marmion
October 4th - St. Francis of Assisi
October 6th - St. Bruno
October 7th - Our Lady of the Rosary
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